Easy Edible Fruit Arrangement for Summer Parties: Food Fun With Fruit Kebabs Fruit Entertaining Desserts Side Dishes Snacks Budget Recipes

If you want an easy show-stopper edible centerpiece for a summer party, I’ve got just the thing for you! I haven’t found a name for it, maybe fruit kebab tree? Fruit bouquet? Fruit porcupine? It doesn’t matter, people loved it!

Recently I volunteered to bring a fruit tray appetizer to my daughter’s high school senior picnic and I had done fruit kebabs for other occasions. I was feeling rather creative, so I decided to spice things up. All of the fruit cost less than $30 total (I’m in upstate New York), so this is a really budget-friendly way to add a great side dish for a lot of people. 

My daughter told me she and her classmates loved it. Many people went back multiple times for more fruit, and I got so many compliments on the presentation. A snack or dessert win-win!

Cuisine: American
Prep Time: 30 minutes
Cook Time: 0 minutes
Total Time: 30 minutes
Servings: Varies

Ingredients

• watermelon
• pineapple
• grapes
• strawberries
• blueberries

Special Equipment

• 12-inch skewers (I bought a pack of 100 for $1.25 at Dollar Tree)

Here's how to make it: 

1. Cube a large watermelon (or more if you have a lot of guests) and set aside. I needed two large watermelons for a class of 87 kids.
2. Do the same with a fresh pineapple (or three to four pineapples for a larger group) and set aside.
3. Organize bowls of grapes (one large bag was fine for my group), strawberries (four to five of the store-bought plastic containers) for the kebabs. I used watermelon, pineapple, grapes and strawberries for mine but you can add any fruit you like as long as it will stay on the sticks. I chose the ones I did because they were less likely to brown quickly. I cut the strawberries down to halves (and in some cases quarters) depending on how large they were. Grapes just pop right on and so will large blueberries.
4. Don’t fill the whole skewer because you need room for guests to hold the skewer and to poke into the watermelon base. Make sure you push the fruit onto the skewer on the pointed end and position strawberries top side first (as it’s more eye pleasing).
5. Most of the other fruits can be popped on in any old way. If your strawberries are cut down a lot, then they also might be fine. For the whole or half ones, the rounded top will look nicer especially if you have the strawberries first on the skewer. Don’t make them all the same; mix and match and make each skewer fun and different! Not everyone likes all the fruit that you put on the skewers.
6. Now for the fun part! I hollowed out one half of the watermelon (a spoon worked well to get the last bits out, and these gooey pieces will be yummy in a smoothie later!). Lay the watermelon half on a tray or large plate so the hard dome shape is up and the flat part is down.
7. Poke the skewers into the watermelon skin one by one. Don’t push too deep, just enough to secure the skewer. Start in the middle and work your way out with the skewers so you have room for your hands to place them in as it fills up.
8. Arrange the fruit sticks close together but staggered, so that the effect is like a bouquet of flowers. It’s an art, so get creative!

Note: 30Seconds is a participant in the Amazon affiliate advertising program and this post contains affiliate links, which means we may earn a commission or fees if you make a purchase via those links.

Recipe cooking times and servings are approximate. Need to convert cooking and baking measurements? Here are some kitchen conversion charts. Here's how to submit your recipes to 30Seconds.

Take 30 seconds and join the 30Seconds community, and follow us on Facebook to get recipes in your newsfeed daily.